The Third Oath of the Blue Sword
The Thirteen Lightning Sword Forms are divided into the first nine stances and the final four. Each form stands alone rather than flowing into the next, allowing them to be grafted onto other martial arts with ease. The first nine stances, in particular, contain the foundational sword principles of the style. Even a mere imitation of their external form can produce considerable power.
The final four, however, are different. They are what the martial world calls profound truths—the true profound mysteries of the art. The latter half of the Thirteen Lightning Sword Forms demands sword gang without exception. It is a technique of condensed energy so advanced that even reaching its threshold is nearly impossible before attaining the Transcendent Realm. That is the true nature of its final four stances.
And the tenth form Namgung Woo had just unleashed—the first of those profound truths, One Flash Extreme Radiance—bleached the entire world in blinding lightning.
A single streak of platinum sword gang erupted with overwhelming momentum, exploding into pure light.
The summit of Mount Wanse, shrouded in night, was suddenly bathed in daylight. It was as if hundreds of lightning bolts had struck at once. The radiance was so intense that anyone who gazed upon it with unprotected eyes would have been blinded. For a power created by a single human, the sight was obscenely magnificent.
Just as terrifying as the outward burst of energy was the sheer condensed might within Namgung Woo’s blade. It sliced through the defensive sorcery cloaking Lee Ja-ryong as easily as paper. Like a red-hot sword melting and cutting through everything before it, One Flash Extreme Radiance completely dismantled Lee Ja-ryong’s spells and finally drove its edge into his flesh.
Crunch!
Even Lee Ja-ryong’s body was no ordinary thing. The sound of metal being split rang out. His bones and muscles, reinforced by some bizarre sorcery, possessed unnatural hardness and resilience. Yet Namgung Woo’s sword carved straight through them, slicing his torso apart.
It was a fatal wound. With one shoulder nearly severed and his upper and lower body split in two, no human could possibly survive.
But the one who had been cut by that flash of extreme radiance had long since ceased to be merely human.
"Celestial Pivot, Celestial Gate, Celestial Mechanism, Celestial Authority. The Four Stars of the Dipper’s Head shall uphold the Emperor’s flesh."
In less than the blink of an eye, Lee Ja-ryong’s incantation was complete. His right shoulder had been split open, his torso severed by One Flash Extreme Radiance, yet his body regenerated in an instant. The moment the words left his lips, the form that had been barely held together by a single spine returned to its original state. It was less healing and more like time itself had been rewound. Even the clothes he wore were restored.
But that was not all.
"Jade Balance, Opening Yang, Shaking Light. The Three Stars of the Dipper’s Handle shall uphold the Emperor’s spirit."
Three mystical orbs rose around Lee Ja-ryong. Each one contained spiritual power comparable to a Gang Pill, condensed into a mysterious whole. However, that was as far as Lee Ja-ryong got.
Having confirmed with his Blue Serene All-Seeing Eyes that the first strike, One Flash Extreme Radiance, had failed to deliver a killing blow, Namgung Woo did not hesitate. The Thunder Emperor Divine Art he had been charging erupted once more with a thunderous roar. The eleventh form followed the tenth—the second profound truth, Thundering Waves Overturning Clouds.
Waves of lightning surged like a raging sea, flipping the very clouds themselves.
Rumble! Crash! Boooom!
Thunderbolts rained down without pause. The sword path, which had been straight, now drew elegant curves. Lee Ja-ryong urgently shifted his orbs to block. One by one, the orbs were erased with each strike.
At the unbelievable sight, Lee Ja-ryong’s expression finally changed. The sorcery of Spinning Jade and Balanced Jade that drew upon the power of the Big Dipper to form the Purple Forbidden Enclosure should not have been so easily shattered by mere sword gang. Even if hastily constructed without a proper foundation, it was a supreme secret art in the field of sorcery—comparable to an unrivaled martial scripture. For it to collapse before ordinary sword gang was simply impossible.
Even Gwak Dan, who stood at the peak of the Transformation Realm, would have found it difficult. His own secret Wind Sword would leave him gasping for breath after destroying even one orb due to the massive internal energy drain. For a Transformation Realm expert who harmonized the three dantians and wielded near-infinite true qi, confronting the Jade Balance orbs was still a daunting task.
Yet to Namgung Woo, they were nothing more than dewdrops clinging to blades of grass.
He could see it. The structure of the energy binding the orbs. The path to dismantle that energy without backlash. The moment Lee Ja-ryong met those coldly glowing blue-white eyes, he instinctively understood the cause.
“A mere lackey of defying heaven dares—!”
Lee Ja-ryong’s eyes bulged as he roared. The relaxed demeanor with which he had looked down on both Gwak Dan and Namgung Woo had completely vanished.
"Left Pivot, Supreme Minister, Lesser Minister, Supreme Assistant, Lesser Assistant, Supreme Guardian, Lesser Guardian, Lesser Steward… The Eight Eastern Stars of the Purple Forbidden Enclosure, align! Right Pivot, Lesser Commander, Supreme Assistant, Lesser Assistant, Supreme Guardian, Lesser Guardian, Supreme Steward… The Seven Western Stars of the Purple Forbidden Enclosure, disperse!"
Pushing his rapid incantation to the limit, Lee Ja-ryong poured out the spell like a man being chased. But no matter how quickly his tongue moved or his lips fluttered, how could it ever be faster than lightning ascending from the earth to the heavens?
Once again, Lee Ja-ryong offered his own body to the ascending thunder of Thundering Waves Overturning Clouds.
Splaaash!
If One Flash Extreme Radiance was the ultimate sharpness, then Thundering Waves Overturning Clouds was the fangs of a thunder dragon. Lee Ja-ryong’s body was not cleanly severed but brutally torn apart, spraying gouts of blood.
Got him!
Lee Ja-ryong rejoiced inwardly and squeezed out his final incantation.
"The Gate of Heaven’s Threshold, open and carry out the imperial decree!"
Namgung Woo heard an auditory hallucination. A sound that should not exist. The creak of an old hinge, as if a door were opening within his mind, shook not his eardrums but his very brain. It was the same as his upper dantian convulsing.
With this, his upper dantian ability should be neutralized! There will be no more lucky flukes like before.
If he could seal away those mysterious eyes, Lee Ja-ryong’s victory would be all but assured.
The Ghost Gate had opened. The Mangcheonhu that had first emerged was merely the beginning. More were appearing even now. Gwak Dan was already struggling against a single Hou; with their numbers increasing, fresh bloodstains were steadily being carved across his body.
If I restore myself once more with the Spinning Jade and Balanced Jade sorcery and summon the orbs again… what?
The blue-white flames had not dimmed in the slightest. They still burned coldly. Namgung Woo’s eyes remained perfectly steady, fixed directly on Lee Ja-ryong without the slightest tremor.
The Gate of Heaven’s Threshold should have opened his Heavenly Gate and shaken his very soul… How…?
Lee Ja-ryong could not understand. He knew of Namgung Woo’s existence. A being who had deviated from the fate he had foreseen. That was why he had waited until Namgung Woo left Beijing—to avoid even the slightest chance of interference.
But no matter how much he lacked heavenly mandate, how could he be like this?
The answer was simple.
This feeling… I know it.
Because he had experienced it before. In that instant, Namgung Woo felt a certain flow through karmic connection. If he had not met Paeng Ye-ryeong, would he have been able to maintain the Blue Serene All-Seeing Eyes at this moment? He would have suffered overload, unable to adapt to the suddenly expanded perception.
The circulation of karma, where past deeds return as fortune. Namgung Woo existed within that vast cosmic cycle.
The fourth consecutive strike of Thundering Waves Overturning Clouds. This time, he would not miss. His target was the middle dantian. If the dantian that governed the body’s balance was destroyed, even a sorcerer would inevitably collapse.
Crack!
Shattering ribs, Namgung Woo’s sword moved like a bolt of lightning splitting into branches, burning and gouging out everything inside Lee Ja-ryong’s body.
“Kuhuk!”
The moment his middle dantian—protected even at the cost of his shoulder—was destroyed, Lee Ja-ryong vomited a mouthful of dark blood. Even though all his internal organs had been torn apart, his body refused to cease its life functions. It had already surpassed the bounds of comprehension. It was a bizarre existence that could feel neither guilt for killing nor remorse for murder.
Lee Ja-ryong struck the flat of Namgung Woo’s sword, which was still coated in sword gang. His own hand was also wrapped in condensed energy.
Thud!
A palm strike filled with the determination to pull the sword out of his body even if it meant tearing himself apart. The wound widened further, but Lee Ja-ryong finally succeeded in freeing himself from Namgung Woo’s blade.
“Fool! Did you think the Ghost Gates would stay quiet while you two played around?! The Mangcheonhu was only the beginning! An endless tide of Hou will cover Mount Wanse and crush the Forbidden City! This is the punishment for the false claimant!”
Lee Ja-ryong pointed a finger at Gwak Dan. Covered in blood and barely holding on, his condition made it questionable whether he would even die. Even if Namgung Woo defeated him, the two men—whose internal energy was nearly depleted—would be swept away by the endless wave of Hou and meet their end.
“So?”
It didn’t matter. That was not Namgung Woo’s concern. He did not say this because he had no interest in the situation. Nor did he consider his own death a noble sacrifice, nor did he believe he could simply abandon Gwak Dan and flee. He simply knew, with pure clarity, that this role was not his to bear.
BOOM!
Another intruder capable of overturning the tide of battle shook the Ghost Gate’s territory on Mount Wanse. A massive aura, in no way inferior to that of Gwak Dan or Namgung Woo, descended before the Ghost Gate.
“Correct. I shall take charge of the Ghost Gates.”
“D-Duke…? How are you already…”
Once again. Once again, the flow had twisted. Another supreme expert who absolutely should not have appeared at this moment. At his arrival, Lee Ja-ryong realized that everything was over.
Namgung Woo took a step forward. It was an ordinary step with none of the profound principles of the Infinite Step, yet to Lee Ja-ryong it felt like the most terrifying footwork of absolute dominion.
“Speak. What exactly do you know?”
“…Very well. I shall tell you. You are…”
Lee Ja-ryong opened his mouth as if in resignation. At the same time, Namgung Woo severed all hesitation. A vibration in a frequency the ears could not register erupted into a silent scream.
The twelfth form of the Thirteen Lightning Sword Forms, the third profound truth. A single strike that filled the world with lightning completely erased Lee Ja-ryong’s body from existence without a trace.
“…I see everything.”
The desperate final struggle of Lee Ja-ryong, who had cast the dual-speech sorcery that allowed him to speak with two voices at once, was painfully clear to Namgung Woo. So clear it was almost pitiful.